GREENFIELD, Iowa — The hospital in Greenfield, Iowa, Adair County Health System, found itself in the direct path of the tornado that ripped through the town, forcing the hospital to temporarily close and adapt.
Now, the hospital operates a walk-in clinic and a real health clinic out of the Nodaway Valley Elementary School.
"Everyone says you can do as many incident command exercises as you want and you'll never be as prepared, which is true, so we all have learned a lot during this time," CEO of Adair County Health System, Catherine Hillestad said.
The hospital's roof, ceilings, windows and lab were destroyed. This led to the need for the hospital's entire roof to be replaced as well as many of its windows.
The hospital also saw major water damage, which led to all the carpet being ripped up and a need for brand new drywall throughout the building.
"You know all of the windows above me were totally destroyed," Hillestad said. "I mean there were branches hanging out of the windows, you know you walk around the building, and you never think it's gonna happen to you, but then when I saw the extent of the damage behind the hospital, I'm like okay, this is real."
No patients or staff were injured the night of the tornado, and Hillestad credits that to the employees.
"A lot of our team members, you know being the heroes that they are, were triaging our patients and patients that came in after the tornado hit, while not realizing what had happened to their own livelihoods outside of town," Hillestad said.
The hospital located at Nodaway Valley Elementary School is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.. On Saturday's the walk-in clinic is open from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m..
The hope is to be reopened by August 1st, but construction timelines could change that.